The Challenge: Battle of the Bloodlines

The Challenge: Battle of the Bloodlines
Genre	Reality game show
Created by	Mary-Ellis Bunim Jonathan Murray
Presented by	T. J. Lavin
Country of origin	United States
Original language(s)	English
No. of series	27
No. of episodes	16
Production
Location(s)	Bodrum, Turkey and Berlin, Germany
Running time	Episode 1: 90 minutes (including commercials); All other episodes: 60 minutes (including commercials)
Release
Original network	MTV
Original release	December 2, 2015 (2015-12-02)[1] – February 17, 2016 (2016-02-17)
Chronology
Preceded by	Battle of the Exes II
Followed by	Rivals III[2]
External links
Website

The Challenge: Battle of the Bloodlines is the twenty-seventh season of MTV's reality game show, The Challenge. Filming occurred in Bodrum, Turkey and Berlin, Germany in June and July 2015, with former cast members from MTV's Real World, Road Rules, Fresh Meat II, Spring Break Challenge and Are You the One? competing both with and against their relatives (in a concept similar to Survivor: Blood vs. Water).^[3] This season marks the first appearance of a Road Rules alum since season 22.

A launch special episode, "Meet the New Blood," premiered on November 9, 2015 on the MTV app and website.^[4] It later aired on the flagship network on November 18, 2015 to 538,000 first-run viewers.^[5] The season premiered on December 2, 2015 on the network and app,^[1][6] and will conclude on February 17, 2016, with the Reunion and "The S... They Should've Shown" specials.

Cast

Host: T. J. Lavin, BMX rider

Note: Chris "CT" Tamburello (RW: Paris) and Faith Brown, the sister of the late Diem Brown (Fresh Meat), make special appearances in Episode 8,^[7] while Tamburello and Zach Nichols (RW: San Diego) make appearances at the end of Episode 9.^[8]

Format

Each team participates in numerous challenges (sometimes called "missions"), which are followed by an elimination round — "The Pit." The winning team of each challenge earns immunity from entering The Pit, while the last-place finisher is automatically sent to The Pit. The winning team also earns the right of choosing the team that will face the last-place finisher in The Pit. There is, however, a condition in which if a same-gender team is automatically sent to The Pit, the winning team is required to send a team that has at least one player of the matching gender to compete in The Pit. The team who wins the elimination round returns to the game and has the opportunity to compete for a share of a $350,000 prize, while the losing team is eliminated from the game.^[9]

Host T. J. Lavin initially did not reveal any twists to the gameplay,^[9] however, beginning in Episode 3, a twist to the game occurred when players were forced to compete against their bloodlines.^[10]

Gameplay

Challenge games

• Water Battle: Played in separate male and female heats, each player runs back and forth with a bucket up a steep pile of dirt, where a water hose is hanging above. Each player tries to accumulate as much water in their bucket as possible, then run back down toward their designated team barrel, and deposit the water in their barrel. Each heat runs for ten minutes, and for the co-ed teams, each player competes against players of their respective gender. The team with the most amount of water in their barrel wins, while the team (with at least one female player) that has the least amount of water is automatically sent to "The Pit."^[9]
  • Winners: Cohutta & Jill
• Family Dinner: Within a glass case, players have to devour, then spit a variety of insects through a plastic tube into a measuring cup, while their bloodline has their head in a separate glass case, with a snake crawling down. One player from each team draws either a red or a blue rock out of a bag to determine which glass case they will be in. The team with the highest amount of dead insects within their measuring cup wins, while the team (with at least one male player) that has the lowest amount is automatically sent to "The Pit."^[11]
  • Winners: Cara Maria & Jamie
• Meet Me Halfway: A platform, with a narrow, unstable swinging bridge in the middle, is suspended 30 feet above water. Similar in style to "Flying Leap" from The Duel, players from each team are positioned at each end of the platform, and have to transfer one flag at a time back and forth by jumping from one end of the platform, onto the swinging bridge and toward the opposite end of the platform. The challenge is played in two different heats, with host T. J. Lavin flipping a coin to determined which team competes first. A player is disqualified if they fall into the water, which reduces the amount of flags that a team will be able to transfer. The team that transfers up to 30 flags in the least amount of time wins, and has to select one female from the losing team, along with their bloodline, to compete in The Pit against one female (along with their bloodline) voted by the losing team. Note: Prior to the challenge, players were split up into two teams, with Cara Maria & Jamie, the winners of the previous challenge ("Family Dinner"), selecting alumni players for their team. For example, if an alumni player was selected by one team leader, their bloodline was automatically sent to the opposing team.^[10]
  • Winners: Red Team
• Air To The Throne: Host T. J. Lavin asks each team a series of trivia questions, which includes spelling, sports, geography, pop culture and U.S. history. The challenge is played in multiple rounds, with each team splitting their team into pairs — one player is on the platform answering the questions, while the other is hanging from an inflatable tube. If a player gets two questions wrong, their partner is dropped into the water by popping the tube. The last team hanging wins.^[12]
  • Winners: Red Team
• Family Connection: Teams have to transfer up to 20 balls from one side of the beach to another, into their team basket. Each player is wearing a helmet with a square panel that resembles a graduation tassel, and after a ball is dispensed, players from each have to transfer the balls by using their heads and not their hands. If a ball hits the ground, it is out of play. The team that transfers the most balls into their basket within a 10-minute limit wins.^[13]
  • Winners: Red Team
• Hand Me Down: Players from each team traverse a series of five ropes that are hanging from a platform at the top of the Folkart Towers. A player is disqualified if he/she falls from the rope or refuses to compete. The team to advance the most players from one end of the platform to the other wins.^[14]
  • Winners: Red Team
• Too Clingy: A large cargo net is placed above a pond. Players from each team have to race up a ladder and from one end of the net to another, then advance on the underside of the net to the other side. A player is disqualified if he/she falls into the water before reaching the finish line. The team that advances the most players to the finish line or in the least amount of time wins.^[7]
  • Winners: Red Team
• Air Pockets: Players from each team have to swim 150 feet downward from a yacht to a buoy that is holding a flag, where there are six cages with limited air supply for two players. If one player makes it to the enclosed cage, where they can catch their breath, they have to wait until another teammate joins them before advancing to the next "air pocket." A player is disqualified if he/she makes their way above water before reaching the final "air pocket." After submerging into the sixth "air pocket," where the flag is located, players have to swim back to the yacht. The team to complete the challenge in the fastest time, or have the most players complete the challenge wins.^[8]
  • Winners: Red Team
• Weight For Me: Each team hikes up a mountain in an endurance race, with checkpoints reminiscent of the season's missions. The checkpoints include crawling under a cargo net, pulling chains into a designated circle, using a rope to advance on a balance beam and advancing from one end of a set of monkey bars to another. Players from each team have to alternate between carrying up a heavy bag to each checkpoint (75 lbs. for the guys and 40 lbs. for the girls) and having their teammate complete the checkpoints. The final checkpoint at the top of the mountain is a puzzle, in which each partner is required to participate in. The first team to complete each checkpoint and solve their puzzle in the fastest time wins, while the last-place team is automatically sent to The Pit.^[15]
  • Winners: Cory & Mitch
• Truck Crossing: Each team has to advance from one tractor trailer to another, with five cars in between, while moving at a speed of 40mph on a runway. Similar in style to the "Speed Dating" challenge from Battle of the Exes II, each player is attached to a safety harness that is hanging from a platform on one moving trailer. At the end of the first tractor trailer, players have to climb down a cargo net before reaching the first of five cars. The team that advances to the second tractor trailer in the fastest time wins and automatically punches their ticket to the final challenge, while the last-place team is automatically sent to The Pit.^[16]
  • Winners: Cory & Mitch

Pit games

• End Of My Rope: Only one player from each team competes in this elimination, and from a distance, has to unravel their rope over a series of poles in order to create slack, enabling them to clip one end of their rope to a carabiner. The first player to clip their rope to their carabiner wins the elimination round for their team.^[9]
  • Played by: Jenna vs. Christina
• Squaring Off: Similar to the "Hall Brawl" eliminations from Battle of the Seasons (2012) and Battle of the Exes II, players have to retrieve a soccer ball within a series of square hallways, and advance the ball past their opponent's goal line. The first player to advance the ball past their opponent's goal line twice wins the elimination round for their team.^[11]
  • Played by: Thomas vs. Cohutta
• Door Slammer: Players must push a door and their opponent into a door frame. Played in a best-of-three rounds, the player who wins two rounds wins.^[12]
  • Played by: Jenna vs. Larissa
• My Way or the Highway: Players engage in a tug-of-war with chains, and have to pull their opponent forward until a yellow mark on the chain matches with a white line in the middle of the course. The first player to pull their opponent forward wins.^[17]
  • Played by: Mitch vs. Raphy
• Ring My Bell: Players have to run back and forth and smack themselves into a mattress, which will ring a bell on the other side. The first player to ring their bell 50 times wins.^[13]
  • Played by: KellyAnne vs. Nany
• Home Wrecker: Players are given two identical rooms with furniture and a sledge hammer. In each room is a small slot in the wall to fit all furniture through. The first player to break all of their furniture and fixtures down to small pieces and insert all of it through the slot wins.^[14]
  • Played by: Mike vs. Stephen
• Spun Out: Players spin downward from a swing from the top of a platform, then have to perform two tasks while dizzy. The first task is to balance on one foot on a wooden pole for ten seconds, and the second task is to place a series of twelve wooden stumps into a column on top of a wooden pole. Each task is performed in two separate rounds, and the player who completes each task in the least combined amount of time wins.^[7]
  • Played by: Jenna vs. KellyAnne
• Hand It Over: Players engage in a tug-of-war with three oversize metal poles that are positioned on both sides of a wall. Each pole is positioned at three different heights. If a player cannot pull their pole from the opponent in a best-of-three match, the winner is determined by which player lasts longer against their opponent.^[8]
  • Played by: Jamie vs. CT & Mike vs. Zach^{[lower-alpha 3]}
• Through Thick and Thin: Teams have to solve a multi-colored puzzle, with one player using a sledge hammer to break through a cinderblock wall, allowing their teammate to advance through the wall. Each player participates in the elimination round. The first player to complete their puzzle wins.^[15]
  • Played by: Cara Maria & Jamie vs. Bananas & Vince
• Mine Not Yours: The first player to wrestle a handle from their opponent twice wins.^[16]
  • Played by: Cara Maria vs. Aneesa

Game summary

Elimination chart

Pit progress

Competition

     The contestant's team won the final challenge.

     The contestant's team lost the final challenge.

     The contestant's team won the mission and was safe.

     The contestant was safe from the Pit.

     The contestant was placed into the Pit and won.

     The contestant was placed into the Pit, and their bloodline won.

     The contestant's team won the mission and was safe, but their bloodline was placed into the Pit and won.

     The contestant was placed into the Pit and was eliminated.

     The contestant wasn't part of the elimination round, but got sent home due to their bloodline's loss.

     The contestant's team won the mission and was safe, but their bloodline was placed into the Pit and lost.

     The contestant was removed from the competition due to injury.

     The contestant was disqualified due to their bloodline's removal from the competition.

Voting

Injuries and replacements

Candice and Tony each suffered injuries at the "Meet Me Halfway" challenge in Episode 3 that required medical attention.

Candice initially suffered a busted lip, and when she returned to the house, she revealed that she also suffered a fractured toe. Prior to the third Pit elimination, host T. J. Lavin delivered the news that Candice was medically unable to continue competing. Leroy was sent home as the result of being Candice's bloodline.^[12][10]

Tony was sent to the hospital after he initially thought he suffered a back injury. When he returned to the house, he declined additional medical attention when producers and fellow contestants noticed that he appeared pale. As the cast and crew were headed to the third Pit elimination at the end of Episode 3, Tony fainted, and was rushed back to the hospital, where his bloodline Shane was summoned to be by Tony's side. Prior to the "Air To The Throne" challenge in Episode 4, T. J. Lavin announced that Tony & Shane were removed from the competition, with Abram and his brother Mike being brought into the competition as replacement players.^[12][10] It was later revealed during the aftershow that Tony suffered a ruptured spleen as well as internal bleeding, and underwent emergency surgery.^[18]

Episodes

After filming

The Reunion

The Reunion special will air on February 17, 2016, at 11:00 p.m. ET/PT on MTV, after the season finale.^[31]

Subsequent challenges

Challenge in bold indicates that the contestant was a finalist on The Challenge.

Notes

References

External links

• Official website